Conceptual illustration of the Allied Korea Joint Command and Control System (AKJCCS) in operation, showing AI-enabled joint command, real-time data integration, and coordinated ROK–U.S. combined force operations across the Korean Peninsula. The company announced that it had won the KRW 93.7 billion (about USD 70 million, VAT excluded) contract under a program led by the Defense Acquisition Program Administration to upgrade the Allied Korea Joint Command and Control System (AKJCCS).

AKJCCS is the central command-and-control architecture responsible for directing ROK–U.S. combined operations across the Korean Peninsula. First fielded in 2015, the system has faced mounting operational and cybersecurity challenges. In addition, the planned transfer of wartime operational control (OPCON) to Seoul and evolving combined command structures have highlighted the need for a comprehensive system redevelopment, rather than incremental upgrades.

Under the new program, AKJCCS will undergo its first full-scale redevelopment in a decade. The upgraded system will incorporate advanced ICT technologies, including AI-based situation analysis and automated decision-support functions, cloud-based server infrastructure, and virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) to improve scalability, resilience, and operational efficiency.

This project is particularly significant as it represents the first integration of AI into a South Korean military command and control system. AI-enabled analytics will rapidly collect and process vast amounts of battlefield data, significantly reducing operators’ workload and shortening decision-making timelines. Intelligent AI services will support commanders throughout the entire decision cycle—from intelligence analysis to operational planning—enhancing the accuracy and speed of command judgments.

Cybersecurity remains a top priority given the highly networked nature of modern command-and-control systems. Hanwha Systems plans to draw on its established expertise in defense cybersecurity and ICT convergence, including experience from previous AI-based command decision-support projects, to deliver a secure and resilient next-generation AKJCCS.

“Securing this contract underscores Hanwha Systems’ leadership in defense–ICT convergence,” a company official said. “By leveraging AI-driven defense technologies, we aim to play a pivotal role in shaping future battlefields and next-generation combined operations.”

Over the past four decades, Hanwha Systems has supplied the ROK military with a wide range of command, control, communications, and intelligence systems, including upgrades to the Master Control and Reporting Center (MCRC), the ROK–U.S. Military Intelligence Management System–Combined (MIMS-C), the Korea Air and Missile Defense Operations Center (KAMDOC), the Battalion-Level and Below Command and Control System (B2CS), and the Military Intelligence Management System (MIMS). The AKJCCS modernization further cements the company’s position as a leading player in South Korea’s defense command-and-control and military ICT sector.

K-DEFENSE NEWS | Strategic Analysis Desk

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